1. Technical Field
The present invention relates in general to data processing and in particular to networked data processing systems. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to systems and methods for automatically connecting to a remote data processing system in advance of anticipated utilization of the remote data processing system.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the field of networked data processing systems, two major classes of networks are recognized, local area networks (LANs) and wide area networks (WANs), and the data processing systems that belong to a LAN or WAN are known as stations. The stations of a LAN are all located within a limited geographical area, such as within a building, and those stations are usually linked together by cables that are utilized exclusively for carrying information between the connected systems. By contrast, however, the stations of a WAN may be widely separated geographically, being located in a different buildings, cities, or nations, for instance. Further, in a WAN information is often transmitted between stations via telephone lines, either through leased lines or through public, switched telephone lines. If a continuous connection between local and remote WAN stations is not required, switched lines are typically utilized since they are less expensive than leased lines.
If a switched line is utilized as a WAN""s communications medium, once the connection is established the switched line can convey information between local and remote stations with great rapidity. One disadvantage associated with utilizing a switched line, however, is the delay associated with establishing the dial-up connection to the remote data processing system (i.e., the connecting delay). In WANs utilizing conventional dial-up technology, such delays impede personal productivity and can cause a request for data from a remote station (i.e., a communication request) to fail. For instance, in a LAN with a server that links the LAN to an Internet service provider (ISP) over a switched line (thereby creating a WAN including the LAN and the ISP), the connection to the ISP ordinarily is maintained while remote communications are active and terminated after a certain period of inactivity. Consequently, the next communication request following a termination cannot be forwarded by the server until a new connection with the ISP has been established, and the connecting delay will be apparent to the station that initiated the communication request. Furthermore, as described below, when the communication request employs an acknowledgment (ACK)-based communications protocol, such as TCP/IP, the connecting delay is likely to cause the initiating station to determine that the communication request failed.
The present invention recognizes that the noticeable delays and communications failures associated with utilizing conventional WAN dial-up technology can effectively be reduced or eliminated, and productivity can be increased, by determining in advance when a connection will be required and then automatically establishing the connection before any communication requests are initiated.
To address the shortcomings of conventional WAN dial-up technology, the present invention provides a method, system, and program product that automatically determines that a communication request addressed to a remote data processing system may be expected and, in response, automatically establishes a connection to the remote data processing system, thereby causing the time interval for establishing the connection to elapse prior to transmission or reception of the communication request. Thereafter, a communication request is forwarded to the remote data processing system via the connection.
All objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed written description.